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Dead Frontier/Issue 101
This is Issue #101 of Dead Frontier by Walkerbait22, titled Fate. ''This is the fifth issue of '''Volume 17.' Issue 101 - Fate "What do you think happens when you die?" Finn asks. It's really a question that comes out of nowhere, in Billie's eyes. She can't imagine what prompted him to ask it, as all he does is lie on the stiff mattress in their room in the office building, eyes fixed on the ceiling, as she sits on the nearby dresser, flipping through the pages of an old magazine. "I dunno. I'm not dead, so I couldn't tell you," she says, gazing at the magazine pages. "I wonder if Kim Kardashian's dead? You think so?" "Oh, yeah, you know she died on, like, the first day, the freakin' bimbo." "Should ask her what it's like being dead, then." "I would, if I could," he says, sitting up. "My question still stands, though." "Jeez, Finn, since when are you so...introspective? Is that the word? I seriously don't know." "Uhh...reflective? Not sure. And I don't know, it's just a weird question. We live around the undead, and crazy people." "Then what about you? What do you think?" "Eh...I dunno. My parents were all into Jesus and took me to church, but I always just shrugged it off as BS. But it'd be nice, having a heaven. I think there could be one," he says, ending with a shrug. "I think...you die. There's just black and a whole lot of nothing," Billie says, shutting her magazine. "Boo. Boring. I want heaven and rainbows and angels." "I'm not saying there aren't. Totally could be. But in all honesty, I think it's nothing more complicated than just dying. Don't overthink it." "Yeah..." he says, looking down at the floor. She hops down from the dresser and sits next to him on the mattress, linking her arm with is. "Why are you worked up about this so randomly?" "It's not really random. I think about it a lot. It's a weird thing. Just dying...you don't exist anymore. You don't feel. And then heaven, too, I don't know, I just didn't bring it up because it felt dumb. Heaven." He chuckles at himself. "It's not stupid. If you wanted to talk about the possibility of Jesus actually being a chicken, Finn, I would sit down have a serious conversation with you about it, okay?" She smiles as he laughs, something she'll never get tired of hearing. '' ''"And that's why I love you. For our chicken Jesus conversations." "Good to know that's my only positive quality," she says sarcastically. "Nah, you've got around...another ten million. Don't worry." She rolls her eyes, but still holds his face with both her hands and gives him a kiss. They open their eyes and smile. "What?" he says with a laugh. "Nothing. You just need haircut." "Come on, it looks good a little long like this. You don't like it?" "Not the biggest fan." "Not the biggest fan...fine. Tomorrow, I'll have Devon give me one when we get back." "Thank you. And speaking of, we should probably go to sleep. Late, big day tomorrow." "Yeah, tell me about it," Finn says, yawning and then laying back on the mattress. "Hannah's first run...still not sure she's gotten over everything." "She hasn't, but we can't keep her locked up in here like a little kid," she says, and she makes herself comfortable, setting her head on his chest. "I know, but...forget about it. She'll be fine, she can handle herself. You're right. I worry too much now." "Just a little." He reaches to his left and turns off the battery powered lamp that sits on the nightstand, extinguishing the room's only light source and shrouding them in darkness. He grabs the covers and pulls them over them both, afterward giving her a peck of the forehead. "'Night." "Goodnight," she says. ---- Two men have Adam and Jake both gripped by the arm, dragging them along the corridor of the eerily empty building. Not a sound comes from any of the rooms and they don't see a single soul venturing the halls. Eventually, the men take them to the last room on the right, throwing them inside and shutting the door, leaving them alone. Jake rubs his arm, where the man had him held tight, and sets his back against the nearest wall. He should've known this trip wouldn't have ended in a smooth rescue. "So. We're caught. Great," he says, looking across the small room at Adam. Adam nods and scratches his cheek. "That's...what it looks like, yeah," he replies. "Ideas?" "Uh..." Adam says. He goes to check the door, which is, unsurprisingly, locked. And, being stripped of their weapons, his mind is drawing a blank. "I really don't know. We can...catch them by surprise? Take them down if they come back...? But they've got fucking rifles and we've got...nothing. Maybe this was a mistake, man. A big mistake." "Y-you know you don’t mean that. Anyone woulda came back f-for you, and you know th-that. And it’s not that b-bad. We can get out of here.” “Yeah? How?” Adam asks. Jake then bends down, reaching into his boot for something. Adam watches, slightly confused, until his expression lights up when Jake retrieves a small pocket knife. He presses a button, and a blade shoots out. “I wasn’t s-supposed to take it, but I did anyway,” Jake says. “Guess they didn’t think to l-look in my shoes. They come in here, I h-hide this behind my back or something, and they w-won’t expect a thing.” He has a small smirk on his face, beaming with pride. And Adam can’t say he isn’t impressed. “Alright, but we have another problem: we have no idea where anybody is,” Adam says. “If Cole or Alec are even alive. Or even where the hell Billie is.” “That...is true,” Jake says. “Okay, we search a f-few buildings, and if we can’t find them, w-we go.” Adam looks unsure, but he eventually nods and takes a seat on the cold floor, setting his back against the wall. “Now we just wait.” ---- The convoy of cars make a stop in front of the Hyatt. The gates are still in construction, a consequence of Roxie’s last appearance, but the few guards they have left stand alert. People file in rapidly, the injured being the first to enter and sent straight to the infirmary. Lienne can hear the commotion from upstairs, and when she makes it down she's bombarded with the sight of frantic people hugging loved ones, the injured being carried, and those just happy to have made it back alive. She searches for a familiar face among the crowd; the first she spots is Duke's, who looks completely exhausted. Ready to collapse any second. He spots the nearest chair and settles down in it, closing his eyes and putting a hand to his temple. His brief rest is cut short, though, when he hears someone call his name. He opens his eyes a little and glances to his left, where Lienne sits in one of the lobby’s plush red chairs. She reaches out to him and grabs his arm. “Sleep time already? No celebration?” she asks. “You’re back.” “But a lot of people aren’t,” he says, sitting up with a sigh. “I know, I can tell. Do you have any official numbers?” “Not yet, nah. Griffin is guessing about eighty percent of us made it back, alive. But that’s counting everyone that’s injured, so wouldn’t be surprised if that number drops. That’s….better than I expected, though.” “Twenty percent...that’s still a lot.” “I know. I wish we all coulda got lucky...doesn’t work like that. But we won, which was the point in the first place. Every single person who went knew the risk, but they just wanted us to win. And we did. Their entire camp is fucked up.” “What about Roxie?” Lienne asks. “Tell me you got her.” “Uh...not sure. We kinda had to leave unexpectedly when shit got crazy. But...I know that…” He trails off, finding it hard to break the news to her. “Look, Lienne. Somethin’ happened. With Alec." "He's not here, is he?" she asks flatly. Duke shakes his head. "No, but.. I know a few people went back in to maybe see if they could find him. Jake said when he saw Roxie he went after her, probably to kill her himself. Left everyone behind and went on his own." "By himself? You people let a one-handed sixteen year old go after some psychopathic bitch?" "I wasn't there, but that's what I was told. I dunno--they could be on their way back right now." "They're not." "Lienne--" "We both know that they're not," she says, and her eyes begin to fill with tears as the fact settles in her mind. "And he's not." She rises from her chair, but he stands as well, grabbing her by the arm. "C'mon, Lienne. You're just giving up like that?" he asks. "It's better I do it now, instead of wondering forever, right?" He hesitates before responding, but then says with a nod, "Yeah, alright. I'm sorry." "Don't be. It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault, but his. Because I told him a million Goddamn times not to let that revenge shit go to his head. But he doesn't fucking listen to me and this is what happens!" Just as she bursts into tears, he pulls her into a hug. "C'mon, you tried to tell him, we all know you did. But sometimes, there ain't shit you can do..." ---- Chloe's hands are full in the infirmary; she's already treated so many people, and with her minimal assistance from a small group of nurses and other doctors, she finds herself quickly overwhelmed. As it looks like things are finally calming down, she's about ready for a break, so she intercepts a young, fair-haired doctor. "Do you think you can take care of everything for a little while? I'm gonna head out for a few minutes," she says, and the doctor nods. "Yeah, of course," he says a little too cheerfully given the atmosphere they're in, and he walks off. She heads to the door, but sees a patient on one of the beds stir out of the corner of her eye. She turns and sees that it's Tora, clutching her abdomen right where the bullet went through. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," Chloe says, rushing over to her and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Probably don't want to do that." "Oh, God, I can see why," Tora says, again wincing as she lies on her back. "Yeah, it's gonna hurt like that for a while. But you'll be fine. Stopped the bleeding early, didn't hit anywhere too important." Chloe sighs and takes a seat on the edge of the bed. She folds her hands in her lap before looking up at Tora. “I wasn’t really expecting you to be up and talking so early, but I’ve been thinking about how to ask you...if you remember anything.” “Anything? I remember everything,” she says, but she sounds a little disoriented. “Oh. Tora, I’m really sorry. Honestly, we were all hoping we’d find Hiro alive but...I’m sorry,” Chloe says. “Yeah, right. I know what you all thought about him, and you probably all thought it was stupid of me to...to even think he was okay." "We didn't, not at all." Tora sighs and closes her eyes. "Doesn't even matter anymore. I always knew, in the back of mind, that he wasn't alright. I've practically been mourning his death since he went missing; I just didn't know it. Now I've finally got some closure and...I'm fine with it." Chloe thinks of some way to console her, but before a sufficient response comes to her head, Tora speaks again: "I really want some rest, Chloe, I'm sorry." "Don't be. Of course you do. I'll be back in a few if you need anything. And don't hesitate to ask." ---- Adam sits on the floor of room, resting his head on his knees. Besides Jake, who leans against the opposite wall, the room is empty. They're growing restless, having been trapped here so long. They don't even hear any sounds from behind the door--no footsteps, no voices. Adam even begins to think they may have just been abandoned. "I'm so freakin' hungry..." Jake complains. "Pretty sure they're not worried about getting your buffet ready," Adam says. "Just don't think about it and you'll be fine." "How can I n-not think about it when m-my stomach's getting ready t-to eat itself?" "Okay, that's overdramatic." "Yeah, but...it's n-not entirely impossible." "...What? Your stomach can't eat itself." "Yeah it can. If you g-go without eating for l-long enough," Jake says. "It probably hasn't even been two hours. You'll live." "I hope," he mutters, sighing and slumping to the floor. He reaches into his boot once again to retrieve the dagger. He realizes its small enough for him to conceal in one hand, if the blade is sheathed. He begins to mess around with it, bored out of his mind, impatiently waiting for his chance to use it. "Hey," Adam whispers, and Jake immediately goes alert. They hear the first sounds coming from beyond the room, in the form of footsteps and murmuring. They both get to their feet, and Jake rushes to Adam's side, his hands behind his back, the knife in his right palm. "Don't say anything. As soon as they get near us, go for it, okay?" Jake nods and swallows hard. He finds himself more nervous than he thought it would be when the time came to put his plan into action. But he composes himself, feeling a bit more confident with Adam’s assistance. The door opens, and the two men that brought them here return, one in a dark blue jacket and the other in black, as silent as they were the first time. They’ve been over the details of the plan a few times, so when Adam feels Jake tap his foot lightly with his shoe, he headbutts the guard in the blue jacket. Just as he does that, Jake presses a small button on the knife handle; the blade flips out and he jams it into the neck of the other guard and pulls it out swiftly. He does the same to the other man and pushes him to the ground afterwards. Adam freezes for a second, a little stunned at Jake. But he gets over it quickly as he reaches for the weapons of one of the men. He takes his pistol, secures it in his waistband, and turns the man's body over just enough so that he can retrieve the rifle. He slings it over his shoulder and sees that Jake is set and ready to go. "Come on. We search this building first," Adam says. ---- Cole sits on the floor of the same room, staring ahead at a blank wall. A single guard stands in the corner, and Walter is crouched down in front of Cole, saying something, but his mind has since wandered and he's stopped listening. Cole decides he's had enough of this, so he sighs, moves his gaze from the wall to Walter, and dares to interrupt him mid-sentence. "Can you just...stab me with your big fucking knife already?" Cole asks. "'Cause all you're doing is talking, talking, talking, when I stopped listening five minutes ago. I dunno what you're trying to gain." "I'm not trying to gain anything, dipshit," Walter says. "What I'm trying to let you know is that deciding to come here was the biggest mistake you've ever made." "I know that already, so just cut to the chase. Put the gun right here, buddy, I'll even pull the trigger for you." He points to his temple, egging him on. But this only irritates Walter more; he stands, pulling his pistol from the holster. "That's what you want, then?" Walter asks. "That's what I'm telling you." "Alright. Have fun with your stupid bitch." He nods to Billie's body, which lies nearby, and spits on the ground next to her. He presses the barrel of the gun to Cole's forehead, finger on the trigger. He nearly pulls it, but Cole grabs him by the wrist, twisting Walter's arm and pointing the gun downward, causing a bullet to ricochet off the ground. Cole gets to his feet, gives Walter's arm another firm twist, and the gun falls to the ground. He picks it up, then realizes the presence of the other guard. A bullet hits the wall next to him as he gets behind Walter and wraps an arm around his throat. Cole looks at the guard, whose frenzied eyes full of uncertainty. His rifle is raised, but he can't fire, unless his aim is impeccable or he's willing to sacrifice Walter for a shot at Cole. "Why didn't you shoot him...you fucking...idiot!" Walter croaks out, attempting to wriggle free from Cole's grasp. "I-I tried!" the guard says. His finger itches along the trigger, but Cole has the pistol dug into Walter's back. He's stuck, but a decision needs to be made soon. But suddenly there's a gunshot from outside, and the door rattles. It's kicked open just a second later, revealing two faces Cole thought he'd never see again. A few shots are fired, but where they came from isn’t clear at first, until he notices the guard drop his rifle and reach for his chest, where three holes on his shirt are stained with blood. He falls to his knees first, then falls face forward. Jake, though, clutches his arm, blood seeping through his fingers. Cole can feel Walter going weak, so he lets him go, throwing him to the ground. He gasps for air and holds his aching throat. "Shit, he fucking nicked me..." Jake says, trying to sound as if he isn't fazed, but his eyes begin to tear up at the pain. "What the fuck happened...?" Adam mutters, eyes locked on Billie, although nothing is recognizable except for the clothes she was wearing. He looks to Cole, but he's pretty much ignored their presence and is focused on Walter. He stands over Walter, and then holds the gun out to Adam. "You--you want me to kill him?" Adam asks. "What--" "No. Just hold it," Cole says. "Whatever you want to do, we probably don't have time for it." "Just hold it." Adam doesn't budge, so Jake steps forward and takes the gun. He quickly sets it on the floor and continues to put pressure on his arm. “J-Just let him do whatever he wants,” Jake mutters. “You think we really have time to?” Adam asks, but Cole has already begun throwing punches at Walter. Cole grabs him by the shirt and continues smashing his right fist into Walter’s face, over and over and over and over. He doesn’t know how long it’s been when he finally stops, wincing at the pain in his hand. He’s exhausted, from his assault and from the events of just today hitting him full force. But the job still isn’t done, as Walter mumbles something Cole can’t understand, or doesn’t care too. Cole reaches over and wraps his hands around Walter’s throat. “No, no, no,” Walter mutters, before his pleas are cut short by Cole’s tightening grip on his neck. He continues squeezing, tighter, tighter, and tighter, watching as his skin turns pale and his life slowly withers away. Walter struggles until all of his strength is gone and his gasps for air are all unsuccessful. Only when his eyes close and his body goes completely limp does Cole let go. "People are gonna come here, Cole. We don't have all day to kill this guy," Adam says. "I’m done. Just give me the gun," Cole says. Adam picks the weapon up from the ground and shoves it in his hands. And without a moment's hesitation, Cole fires a shot into Walter's head. ---- "Okay, good news is they d-don't have a lot of people l-left to defend themselves," Jake says as they maneuver through the building. "Maybe...twenty p-percent of what they started with. And they're probably st-still trying to c-compose themselves. That could give us t-time to search for Alec." "I didn't see what house he went into," Cole says. "Did you?" "No. But it was t-toward the south end, I know th-that. If we want to r-risk going that far." "We have to," Cole says, stopping at the front door. He volunteers to look first, so he opens the door just enough so that he can peek through. Who's leftover of Roxie's guards seem to be preoccupied getting rid of the infected that were let loose earlier, or moving the dead bodies--human and infected alike--that now carpet the ground. But there are enough able bodies out there to make Cole wary of escaping in that direction. He closes the door and turns back to Adam and Jake. "We should find a back way. Sneak our way around the perimeter or something," he suggests. "Are there a lot of them out there?" Adam asks. "Not really. But they've got better numbers, and guns. Come on.” They depart to the opposite direction, not bothering to check any of the rooms in their urgency. “You alright?” Cole asks Jake as they near the back of the building. He still holds his arm, but the small amount of bleeding there was looks to have stopped. “Yeah. Not a big d-deal. I’ll live.” Jake says. “What are you, a tough guy now?” “I’ve always been,” he replies, evoking a weak smirk from Cole. “Alright, over here,” Adam says, stopping in front of a large metal door. This time he opens it, peeking outside. He can hear gunshots, but there’s no one in the nearby vicinity. “Okay, this is good. Stay low, be quiet, move fast.” Adam exits first, Jake next, and then Cole behind them both. The air is warmer than normal, but still chilly, and the position of the sun indicates late afternoon. They keep close to the wall, staying behind various homes as cover and moving around the perimeter as Cole suggested, and take the occasional glance into the camp’s center. The infected still seem to be the main priority, not the three people currently escaping, though Cole, Adam, and Jake aren’t even sure if they’ve been noticed at this point. What’s left of the back gate comes into view; a man is bent over the wreckage, picking up pieces of metal and moving them away from the walls. Adam approaches him, smacking him in the back of the head with a pistol instead of firing a fatal shot. Unfortunately, they’re out in the open now, a fact that’s not known to only them. They hear a shout, proving they’ve been spotted. They make a dash for a nearby home and duck behind it. “We can’t make it to the s-south end if they saw us,” Jake says. “Dude, Alec is there,” Adam says. “I know that, but we’re n-not fucking ninjas. We can’t k-keep sneaking around f-forever. Especially if they s-saw us. Gate’s right there.” Adam and Cole lock eyes and exchange a nod. Cole feels sick to his stomach having to abandon the search for Alec, but the longer they stay, the lower the possibility they get out at all. They leave their cover, hurrying in their escape. Adam helps Jake to climb over the rubble first. Cole turns his head to look behind him, and he’s a little confused as it looks like no one is paying them any mind, until he sees a sniper camped out on top of a building with his sights trained on them. “Adam, go!” Cole says, assisting him over the heaps of metal. Once he’s over, Cole grabs onto a large metal pole that sticks out at an odd angle and lifts himself up. He nearly loses his balance as a bullet whizzes past his head, but he sticks with it, putting one foot over, then the other. He’s ready to jump down, about five feet, when he feels an excruciating pain in the back of his leg as a bullet rips through his kneecap. He tumbles forward, smashing into the grass at Adam and Jake’s feet. Cole grabs onto his knee, blood quickly covering his hands. “Holy shit…” Adam says, crouching down next to him. Cole is speechless as he slowly removes his hands and stares down at his leg; he doesn’t even cry out, in shock at the damage that must be done. But he doesn’t even have time to process it as Adam lifts him up, putting Cole’s arm over his shoulder. He beckons Jake for assistance, and they work together to carry him into the nearby woods. Even though it looks like they haven’t been pursued, they don’t stop there, maneuvering through the trees that’ll act as cover, if they need it. “Okay, okay. Stop, put him down,” Adam orders after a few minutes. Jake complies, assisting in setting Cole against a tree. “My fucking leg…” is the first thing Cole mutters, still staring down at his injury as Adam removes his hoodie. He takes a knife and cuts off the sleeve, afterwards wrapping it around Cole’s knee. “Whoa...is he g-gonna be okay?” Jake asks. “I don’t know. Let me just--focus on this,” Adam says, tying the fabric. He reaches for his hoodie again and cuts the other sleeve, handing it to Jake. “Use that for your arm.” “Thanks.” Adam looks back to Cole, and pats him on the cheek to get his attention. “Cole. Cole, I need to know if you can understand what I’m saying,” Adam says. “He got shot in the leg, of course he can,” Jake says. “He could be going into shock or something, I don’t know. I’m not a doctor. I just want to make sure.” “My...my entire fucking knee...How am I…” Cole says, but he trails off, looking completely dazed. Adam sighs. “We gotta get going. I’m gonna have to help him….walk, so I need you to deal with infected, okay? Your arm probably hurts like hell but...sorry.” “Yeah, I can do that,” Jake says. Adam lifts Cole up, allowing him to use his body as support. As they begin their trek through the woods, Adam says, “Don’t worry, we’re gonna get you back, man. Don’t worry.” Category:Dead Frontier Category:Dead Frontier Issues Category:Issues Category:Walkerbait22's Stories